The Military Administration over Israeli Arabs

Photo by GPO: Head of Umm al-Fahm village signs an
oath of allegiance to the State of Israel in the presence
of IDF officials, with the transfer of the village
to Israeli rule in 1949

The Military Government over the Israeli Arabs was officially established on October 21, 1948, amidst the Israeli War of Independence. The Catalyst for its establishment was the support of the Israeli Arabs in the Arab nations which invaded the young Jewish state. 

Its acts were legally based on the "Defense Regulations" enacted by the British Mandate in 1945, in view of the increasing activity of Jewish underground organizations activities against the British rule.

The Military Administration acted under three commands: Galilee and the area known as the Little Triangle in the northern part of the country, and the Negev at its south. At first, the administration worked in parallel to the Israeli Ministry of Minorities, which was responsible for the humanitarian perspective of Israeli Arabs, but this office was closed in 1949, and the military administration remained the single authority responsible for the Israeli Arabs affairs.

Photo by GPO: Israeli soldiers leave the area of-
Umm al-Fahm in 1966

Due to growing criticism over the necessity of the Military Administration, a ministerial committee was formed in 1958 to examine its right to exist. The Committee recommended by a majority of three versus two to cancel the military government, but Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion however, overruled the conclusions of the Committee under the recommendation of security authorities.

The military administration over Israel's Arabs was finally abolished in 1966 following an announcement by Prime Minister Levi Eshkol to the Knesset (the Israeli parliament).

In cities with a mixed Arab-Jewish population such as Haifa and Jaffa, the military government was abolished back in July 1949. 

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